critterchick

We are on the Edge transpacific sailing from Sydney to Honolulu in April. We were booked in a Magic Carpet suite and saw four price drops prior to final payment. No issue getting them, but we had to give up $800 in OBC for the last price drop (which was several thousand dollars, so well worth it). After final payment, the price dropped another $4000 and now it’s down even further. They are holding fast on CS and higher fares (that’s why I keep looking, not to poke myself in the eye, lol). I was able to upgrade to an Aqua Suite but would have preferred the money. Resolutions wasn’t budging. Then I later read that two people did get a price reduction post-final payment so I gave it one last shot. No go, but we were happy with the price we paid so really don’t have a gripe.

According to the Celebrity website you get 2 bottles of water daily in the suite. And Blu is on a space available basis (not that you asked), not guaranteed. Not exactly the best of both the Retreat and the best of AQ as advertised.

Millennium class can do it. They’re roughly the same size as Royal Caribbean’s Radiance class and we’ve sailed into Nawiliwli a couple of times on Radiance herself. As to the original question, if you want to see Hawaii, do it independently or add a week post-cruise to see Oahu and another island. We are lucky to get over here several times a year so are sticking with the Edge TP that also dropped Lahaina and substituted a drive by Kauai, which is a big fat nothing burger as the ship can’t get very close. But we are spending time in Australia pre-cruise so we have that to look forward to.

I bring my best jewelry with me - it's all insured and it's just stuff. I seldom wear anything while in ports except for my engagement ring and wedding band (and not for water sports because they could slip off my finger once it shrinks in the water) but onboard I wear it all. If I get to the point that I don't feel safe wearing it on the ship then I'll give it away or sell it. There's no point in owning it just to keep it at home.

How did you gain access on Navigator? DH has tried to connect our firestick in several cabins and has found that at some point he needs a password to proceed. We have a Samsung remote but it doesn't help. Thanks for any guidance - we really want to stream the Rose Parade in the cabin on New Year's day.

We usually have the UDP so like to start off our cruise with lunch in a specialty restaurant. We generally try to board around noon (we're mostly sailing from LA, where the port is a 15 minute drive for us) and go straight to lunch. The cabins usually open up while we're at lunch so that mad rush is over by the time we're finished - we can unpack our carryons and maybe even get in a quick nap before sailaway. The only thing we'd be concerned about is getting UDP dinner reservations, but we like to dine late and there's almost always room for us somewhere. I've read that Royal will start allowing us to make reservations online so that stress will be eliminated, or at least greatly reduced.

We booked a W GTY for Navigator for NYE, last minute for us (about 30 days out). There are some J4 cabins all the way forward (NV has 4; VY has 2) that have no business being designated as such and I would not have been happy to be assigned one of them. However, the price difference between the GTY and picking our own was over $2000 (and DH REALLY wanted to go on this cruise) so we booked and held our breath. We were assigned a Deck 9 cabin in a good location, so all is well.

We’ve been to Alaska many times, on all the lines you mention except for NCL. Any glacier is special but some are more special than others and Princess do offer the best of the best. However, their entertainment is lacking - the main theater can’t accommodate every passenger, so people queue up 45 minutes or more ahead of the show to get a seat. There are some nice venues around the ship, but other than a ship with a disco, you won’t find much late night entertainment. Their demographic is the oldest I’ve encountered (and I’ve been on HAL, which has the reputation of being God’s waiting room). Royal Caribbean is all about families these days and in July and August you will find hundreds of children on board and much of the activity will be geared toward them. Ovation is a really nice ship, though, and the entertainment is first rate. I haven’t been on Edge class yet but many people rave about the entertainment. I love Royal’s Radiance class ships - Radiance herself was built for Alaska and has tons of glass everywhere so you can take in the view. I’m also very fond of the Millennium class - we just got back last week from a B2B round trip from Vancouver and, apart from having identical ports in both directions (I would have liked to see Sitka or Haines on the itinerary), it was wonderful. The entertainment in the theater was top notch, there were combos and bands playing all over the ship and on the southbound there were quite a few families of parents + adult children. The nightclub was hopping the few times I poked my nose in there. We’ve sailed from Vancouver, Seattle, Seward and Whittier. My vote would be to fly to Anchorage or Fairbanks, rent a car and spend 4-5 days exploring on your own before you head to Seward (Royal and Celebrity) or Whittier (Princess). I’m generally not a cruise tour fan - we spent a night in Anchorage (because our flight arrived at 10:30pm), then drove up to Denali, spent three nights at a cabin resort, did a bus tour of the park, came back and wandered on our own. Then stayed one night at a Princess lodge (they can be booked independently) and visited Talkeetna (meh, but a fabulous Thai restaurant on the way there). We turned the car in at Anchorage, spent one night (worth it to have dinner at the Marx Brothers cafe) and took the train to Whittier. We booked the dome car and it was wonderful. Arrived in time to dump our bags and take a cruise of the bay before boarding the ship. When we did a round trip a few years ago, we rented a car in Seward and drove up to Girdwood to tour the wildlife rehabilitation center. We sprang for the VIP tour and got a lot closer to the critters than the others. The Kanai Fjords tour was wonderful as well. Just a rough idea of what you could do. I don’t care for the Seattle itineraries - they go outside of Vancouver Island both ways so there’s no real inside passage to see. Cruises ending in Vancouver usually go between Vancouver Island and the mainland on the return, when it’s light outside - the scenery is breathtaking. Also, the Seattle cruises often have an evening call in Victoria on the last night of the cruise - 5:00-10:00 or a variation of that time frame. Far too short and too late to enjoy all Victoria has to offer. OK, I’ll stop now.

We held a cabin for Infinity to the Greek Isles while onboard Millennium a couple of weeks ago (I booked it from our cabin, not through the future cruise desk). We got a good rate on the 4th of July sale, with $1250 OBC for a 10-night cruise. When I looked a couple of days later to see if it would make sense to book onboard, the price had gone up over $2000 and the OBC cut to $800. While it’s true that X will always have some kind of sale going on, some really are better than others. Book at what you believe to be a fair price and keep checking prices. Our Edge TP sailing has had two price drops since we booked in April.

One of my pet peeves is that lack of verification. My DH served in the Navy for 23 years. On one cruise we met a guy who said that he checks the box even though he never served. You can believe he got an earful. From me. Princess (I think all of the Carnival-owned lines) require proof of eligibility before giving you the benefit. Most cruiselines don’t consider you a veteran unless you have 2 years of active duty status. A friend of mine got pregnant and resigned her AF commission at 20 months, so doesn’t qualify for discounts.

We are on the Grand Danube cruise in September 2023. Our hotel was changed from Radisson Blu to Marmorosch Bucharest. According to the website the hotel opened in 2020. It's an Autograph Collection property, in the Marriott portfolio.

We sailed on Celebrity Xpedition in 2013 and are sailing on her again in September. No ship is going to have a program that caters to children, but as long as they are able to do all of the activities, they should have a great trip. Flora and Silver Origin look like amazing ships but they were far more expensive and IMO not worth the extra money. We were only in our cabin long enough to sleep and shower, otherwise were on the go. The food was very good (probably better on the other 2 ships but for us not worth the extra price tag). Celebrity also have a small catamaran that holds 16 guests. I think her itinerary is the same as the others.

Our August 22 cruise's e-doc have the old rate. We booked that in March. My August 8 cruise that I booked last week has the higher rate. I can't fathom what it will be like at Guest Services if those who didn't pre-pay see a higher charge without notification. My theory is that they might have been planning to announce the increase (as they have always done in my years of sailing on them) but the new Covid-related protocols distracted them. But somebody forgot to tell the programmers. I expect it to happen in the fall, but I also expect that they will give fair warning. I did a mock booking for next year and the current gratuity rate was included on the confirmation. That is a false blanket statement. You have no idea what people who remove the auto gratuity do. Sure, many are cheapskates or from countries where a living wage is the norm and don't know the consequences of removing the tips without substituting cash. But many of us are also remember the days when it was recommended that we tip four people - our stateroom attendant and our headwaiter. Cash or room charge. Cash is king to those who receive it - I always give my stateroom attendant a choice it's always the answer. I've been told by attendants, waiters, bar servers and Concierges that any cash given to an individual is theirs to keep, whether or not the autotip is removed. On Princess, they have to turn in the cash if the autotip is removed, so doing so screws everybody, even the person you think you're rewarding.

I don't walk around the WJ, but I do leave a tip for the table server and whoever brings me my libations. On cruises where we have dinner in the WJ, we will give the manager an envelope on the last night to be shared with the crew there.

And the group rep hadn't heard of any increase. I did a mock booking for another cruise today and the $14.50 rate is on the confirmation. The rep said he thought it might be a glitch (as if that ever happens, lol), but we shall see. Royal really need to notify TAs and passengers alike if they are going to raise their rates. I can see Guest Services being overrun and that's not fair to anybody.

I booked a cruise on Wednesday and the confirmation still says $14.50/17.50. But the edocs that were issued yesterday say $16.00/18.00. I'm waiting on hold for the group department to see what they have to say.

We tip the butler at the end of the cruise.

Will PG accept the EMed proctored tests? If so, bring a few with you. They do add to the baggage, as they come in a large box and you can't break the seal on it until it's time to test.

You only need to do the one test within 2 days (no longer worded as 48 hours). Only unvaccinated guests, who would only consist of children under 5 at this point, need the second test as the pier. From the horse's mouth: https://www.celebritycruises.com/healthy-at-sea/alaska-travel-requirements#roundtrip-vancouver

I’m very sorry for your loss. May he Rest In Peace.

There are itineraries when you have to give up your passport as you board the cruise. If you refuse, you are denied boarding. As for not giving up your passport during the cruise, you likely would cause everybody else on the ship to be denied entry to the port until I you complied. A passport isn’t a magic talisman. If by some remote chance it is lost or stolen, it can be replaced. You can get back home without it, although it would be inconvenient and likely expensive. Pick your cruises carefully if you absolutely refuse to comply. What’s truly crap is that one can disembark a cruse ship, ride a train or bus and drive a car over the border without a test. It’s hard to comprehend how CDC considers planes to be so dangerous yet doesn’t require testing for domestic flights.

Cruise WIth Confidence still applies to cruises booked by March 31 and sailing by September 30, 2022. If you cancel up to 48 hours prior to the cruise, then you will get an FCC. I’m not quite sure what will happen if you cancel when you’re in, say, the 50% penalty phase - it “should” be an FCC for the penalty amount and a refund of what’s still refundable, but I don’t know if Celebrity see it that way. If I sail from Los Angeles and test positive I can drive home and recover there. I’m not safer as far as whether or not I’ll become seriously ill, but I am a whole lot less inconvenienced and out of pocket for any quarantine expenses than I would be overseas. The cruise lines are only requiring the 2 shots, not the booster. Some countries require a booster if your final dose of the vaccine (or the only one if you got a single-shot one) is more than 270 days prior to your arrival. I don’t know if they require a second booster if you’re more than 270 days past the first one.

I was talking more about washing hands, not jamming every last body into an elevator and general sanitary habits. From what I’ve observed on the cruises I’ve taken since the restart, those things have gone back to “normal,” and not in a good way. They don’t need to have a daily count, but if there is spreading infection, I think it would be helpful to let people know. I’ve been on ships where the Captain used the noon report to give Noro stats and, although it wasn’t what I wanted to hear when going to lunch, it seemed to help get things under control. Maybe people were listening; maybe it just ran its course. I don’t know….

Unless OP used a really bad TA, it should actually make things easier on them to let the TA handle it. The TA’s commission is protected, so there’s nothing legitimate to ask for. And Celebrity generally will not talk directly to a passenger about anything related to the money side of a cruise. I don’t know if they make an exception under these circumstances.

How is it not relevant? There clearly are people who believe that basic protocols don’t apply to them and perhaps being nagged incessantly with data to support the nagging would make them throw up their hands and comply. I’ve gotten a little sloppy in my people-avoiding protocols but would reinstate them i full force if there were enough cases to lower the odds of testing positive before boarding my flight home to the US. On Crown Princess (which we dubbed Noro Princess because it seemed to be embedded in the ship), the Captain’s noon report included the ebb and flow of cases and he took the opportunity to exhort us to wash our hands. Yes, it was gross to hear the vomit/diarrhea report right before lunch, but having watched DH go down with Noro, it was a lot easier to take than that.